Airtel boss crowned Telecom CEO of the year

May 24, 2016

Lucy Quist, the multiple award winning Managing Director of Airtel Ghana has been crowned the Telecom CEO of the year at the Ghana ICT and Telecom Awards (GITTA) held on Saturday 21 May 2015 at the Kempinski Gold Coast Hotel.

The CEO of the year award – the most prestigious honour is conferred on a CEO in the industry who has demonstrated exceptional leadership, inspired their team to deliver exceptional results for the year under review and one who is personally involved in a social cause to transform lives.

Lucy Quist, who is the reigning CIMG Marketing Woman of the year came tops among all the CEOs in the industry for her exceptional drive and leadership, her ability to inspire and lead her team to deliver extraordinary results that has transformed Airtel Ghana into the fastest growing telecom company in Ghana and leapfrogging it into the number 3 position for data market share.

The award was also in recognition of her selfless dedication to inspire young people to believe in themselves and to fully realise their potential.

Reading the citation for her award, the organisers, Instinctwave also commended Lucy for her passion to inspire young people through the Evolve with STEM initiative, for her high media visibility.

According to Akin Naphtal, CEO of Instinctwave the Airtel MD’s media visibility as well as her social initiatives scored her high points for this accolade.

“Lucy Quist has been one of the most media friendly CEOs within the year under review. The [Evolve with] STEM initiative which she is personally spearheading will go a long way to encourage younger ones to venture into science and technology.”

“Since assuming the role of CEO of Airtel Ghana in May 2014, Lucy Quist has led the transformation of the company and refocused her team on delivering exceptional experiences for customers, delivering world class innovations to enrich customers experience and pursing a differentiated strategy that has positively positioned Airtel Ghana for growth.”

Under her leadership, the company has successfully launched breakthrough innovations and sub brands dedicated to serving different customer segments. During this time, Airtel has become a well sought out employer for young talents, won multiple corporate and CSR awards and became the most loved brand in the daily lives of Ghanaians.

During the 2015 edition of the awards, Lucy was celebrated with a Special Recognition by the Telecom Industry for her mercurial rise to become the first Ghanaian woman to lead a multinational telecoms company and for shaping industry thinking.

In December 2015, Lucy launched Airtel Ghana’s newest CSR initiative – Evolve with STEM – which she passionately leads to inspire belief and empower young people to pursue education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Since launch, the initiative has impacted over 1,000 pupils and inspired many Ghanaians and Corporates to set up other initiatives to promote STEM.

In a brief remark at the awards, Lucy said “I am truly honoured to be recognised as the telecom CEO of the year. My appreciation goes to the awards committee and everyone who nominated me for this prestigious award. It has been a great year for Airtel Ghana – a year in which we grew our voice and data customers ahead of the industry and launched breakthrough innovations in data and Airtel Money. A year in which we have won multiple awards for our innovations, for our Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives in education and community empowerment.”

“At Airtel, our commitment has always been to deliver superior value for customers and all stakeholders and this award is a recognition of the effort we put in every day to make this happen. I dedicate this award to my team at Airtel, who work tirelessly to provide the best experience for our customers. I dedicate this also to our cherished customers for making us the network of choice and to my family for their continuous support and encouragement”.
She continued “ICT and telecoms bring lots of convenience to people. It powers dreams and shapes aspirations. It connects family, friends and colleagues to collectively deliver extraordinary outcomes. For those who know me well in the industry, they will tell you that my resolve is to better the lives of women, children and the less-privileged in society through Technology. I look forward to the day when together, we will make Ghana the technology hub of Africa for talents and breakthrough innovations that will transform the continent.”

Lucy was also honoured on the same night at the Glitz Africa Women of the year award as the Corporate Personality of the Year.

Airtel Ghana also swept 3 of the most prestigious award categories at the event – Best data and Internet Service Provider of the year for the company’s superior internet and data service offering, its leadership in data and digital innovation and for providing the best internet experience for its customers which has driven growth for the company and moved it to number 3 position in data customer market share.

The other two awards were: Best use of Social Media and Best Marketing Campaign of the year.

Airtel was recognised for effectively using social media to engage and connect with customers and followers, providing relevant content that inspires and connects with followers and for proactively using their social media handles to respond to customer queries and complaints in a timely manner. This is not the first time Airtel’s use of social media has been recognised.

The company was previously recognised by Socialbakers as the most socially devoted brand in Ghana and ranked the 2015 Most Influential telecom company on Social Media by the Ghana Social Media Ranking.

The company’s Too Much campaign also won the Marketing Campaign of the year.